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From the olive to the oil
Olive trees are arguably as entrenched in Lebanon’s identity as its cedars. The country is home to 16 olive trees known as the Sisters, or the Olive Trees of Noah, which are among the oldest olive...
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Lebanon’s oil & gas sector
Lebanon is finally stepping into the exploration phase. The Council of Ministers approved the awarding of exploration and productions licenses mid-December to a consortium made of France’s Total,...
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From Pax Ottomana to Pax Persica, and everything bloody in between
While 2017 began with promises that Lebanon was entering a new era, the year ended with proof that our political culture has not advanced a millimeter in hundreds of years. This land is still ruled...
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Lebanon’s waste: another ongoing saga
The long-term effects of Lebanon’s 2015 waste-management crisis will likely linger for years, and chances that the experience will be relived in the medium-term remain high. Incineration is the...
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The comeback year
After five long years, it seems the dark stormy clouds of dwindling tourist figures and empty rooms have finally cleared from the sky of Lebanese tourism. 2017 was reported by those in the industry to...
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Deeply dancing diversity of culture
Culture in Lebanon is a mosaic of many histories and identities, from the most ancient of civilizational triumphs—such as the sarcophagi exhibited at Mathaf, the National Museum—to the reconstruction...
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Where do we go now?
At the end of 2017, Lebanon does not know exactly where its economy stands because there is a lack of publicly available quantifiable data to suggest what direction Lebanon is headed in the coming year...
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Political maneuvering
According to elected officials, 2017 was a year of achievement for the Lebanese state. After years of political polarization that prevented even basic governance, lawmakers made progress this year by...
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Fiscal performance and the debt outlook
There has been quite a lot of concern regarding Lebanon’s recent fiscal performance and its debt outlook. In its Article IV reviews for Lebanon, the International Monetary Fund has repeatedly alerted...
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In need of new energy
Lebanon’s electricity sector was not saved in 2017, despite an emergency plan from the Ministry of Energy and Water (MoEW) endorsed by the cabinet earlier in the year. While the electricity needs for...
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The saga of Lebanon’s first licensing round
At the end of 2017, politics once again threatened the completion of Lebanon’s first offshore oil and gas licensing round. More than four years ago, former Prime Minister Najib Miqati resigned the very...
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Lebanon’s mismanagement strikes again
Lebanon is an oasis. In a region synonymous with desert, the only significant stretches of sand in the tiny, water-rich country are along its 220-kilometer Mediterranean coast. It is the only place in...
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Missed connections
Their approaches have been as different as fresh fallen snow is from the salty splash of the sea. Abdel Moneim Youssef, former head of the Lebanese state-owned telecom provider Ogero, was cold....
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At long last…
Guarded optimism from a variety of anti-establishment groups, political movements, and individuals followed the mid-2017 approval of a new electoral law. Lebanon’s Parliament has thrice extended its...
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A new hope
For the first time in a very long time, I am hopeful that activism in Lebanon is opening up to new ways of mobilizing and engaging citizens in public life. I have been involved in a range of...
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You can build it, but will they come?
Amid plots of unsold, multi-million dollar reclaimed land, on what was 30 years ago an uncontrolled garbage mountain rising from the sea, Downtown Beirut now features more completed buildings than...
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Improving on tradition
Fall is peak season for Lebanon’s agriculture sector, as farmers are busy harvesting olives, grapes, apples, thyme, pine nuts and apples. These products are then used to make traditional goods such as...
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Of reds, whites, and rosé
There is a lot to raise a glass to when it comes to Lebanese wine. 2017 saw several new wineries entering the market, with a few more slated to launch their first vintage in 2018, raising the total...
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Food for thought
Executive sat with Mounir Bissat, secretary of Syndicate of Lebanese Food Industries, to talk about the challenges and opportunities in front of the agro-industry subsector experienced in 2017. E...
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